Apparatus for slaughtering hogs



T. I. GODMAN.

slaughtering Hogs.

Patented July 15, 1856.

THOMAS J.

GODMAN, OF

MADISON, INDIANA.

APPARATUS FOR SLAUGHTEBING- I-IOGrS.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 15,337, dated July 15, 1856.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS J. GODMAN, of Madison, in the county of Jefferson and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for slaughtering Hogs; and -I do hereby declare that the same is described and represented in the following specification and drawings.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my improvements I will proceed to describe their construction and use, referring to the drawings in which the same letters indicate like parts in each of the figures.

Figure l, is a plan and Fig. 2, an elevation of an apparatus for slaughtering hogs with my improvements.

The nature of my invention and improvements in the apparatus for slaughtering hogs consists in the arrangement of a horizontal revolving wheel or frame provided with hooks on its periphery, arranged at or near the scalding bench and used to transport and transfer the hogs from said bench on which they are deprived of their hair, to the several workmen in succession which scrape them down, gut and wash them; holding the hogs convenient to each work man a proper time for him to perfom his allotted portion of the slaughtering process.

In the accompanying drawings, A, is the scalding vat which may be heated by steam or otherwise; in which the hogs may be properly scalded and drawn out onto the bench B, which is made to incline slightly from the vat A, so that the hogs may slip with less labor, as they .are passed from one workman to the next in the series, which workmen stand on each side of the bench upon the platforms G, C, provided for that purpose.

D is a perpendicular shaft provided with pivots at each end which turn in proper boxes provided for that purpose and fastened to the frame ofthe building in which the apparatus is located. 1

The wheel E, is fastened to the shaft D, and sustained by the rods F, F, which are fastened to the rim of the wheel E, and to the circular plate G fastened to the shaft D near its upper end. The wheel E is provided with a series of hooks H, H, fastened upon its periphery to receive the gambrels on which the hogs are suspended or hung upon the wheel. This wheel is so arranged that its periphery turns near the bench B, a little higher than the bench, and over the inclined plane P, which is fastened to one side of the bench and so arranged that when a hog slips down the inclined plane P he propels the wheel D the length of one of the spaces between the hooks H, H, so that the use and operation of the wheel may be described as follows to wit. The hogs are rolled and slipped along upon the bench B, by the workmen who scrape off the hair until they come opposite the inclined plane P, when a boy who stands upon the bench for that purpose inserts a gambrel into his hind legs and places it (the gambrel) over one of the hooks H, and shoves the hog oif of the bench B, so that he will slip down the inclined plane P and propel the wheel the space between the hooks so as to bring and leave the next hook in a proper 'position to receive the next hog. This apparatus enables a boy to do the work of four men, off bearers at two dollars per day each. The labor of lifting and carrying the hogs frequently causes them to rupture blood vessels, so that ofibearers are the most diflicult laborers to procure of any employed in the process; hence seven dollars per day is saved in each slaughtering gang. And besides it enables a gang to accomplish fifty per cent more work in a given time. ,7

There are three or more hogs constantly on the wheel which are operated upon first by the scraper down, second by the gutter, third by the washer out of the inside; each laborer performing his allotted portion of the process of slaughtering on the hog before him in about half a minute; when the wheel is turned by a fresh hog from the bench sliding down the inclined plane to the first laborer in the series, and at the same time transfers the hogs from each laborer to the next one in the series; and the hog carried from the last is taken and hung in the drying room.

I believe I have described and represented the natureand operation of my improvements in the apparatus for slaughtering hogs, so as to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use it and I wish it to be understood that I do not confine myself to the precise details herein given, so long as the peculiar character. of my invention is retained. But

What I clalm as my invention and improvement in the above described apparatus for slaughtering hogs, is

The horizontal revolving Wheel or frame provided with hooks on its periphery arranged at or near the scalding bench and used to transport and transfer the hogs from the bench (on which they are deprived of their hair by pulling and shaving) to the 10 scraper down, gutter, Washer out of the inside, and off bearers Which hang them in the drying room; holding the hogs convenient to each laborer in succession a proper time for him to perform his allotted or respective portion of the slaughtering process. 1

THOMAS J. GODMAN.

Witnesses:

J. DENNIS, Jr., JOHN S. HOLLINGSHEAD. 

